The British Board of Film Classification (BBFC) has released a podcast just in time for Halloween, for families choosing to stay in for a spooky movie night rather than go out trick or treating.
Latest BBFC podcast released for families who are planning on throwing a movie night to celebrate, rather than go trick or treating
The Witches (1990), Pinocchio (2019) and Scoob! (2019) are all discussed in detail, revealing snippets of old classification reports and age rating insights
Additional resources for families on BBFC website, including movie night pack and listicle
The British Board of Film Classification (BBFC) has released a podcast just in time for Halloween, for families choosing to stay in for a spooky movie night rather than go out trick or treating.
The podcast focuses on films that the BBFC has rated PG, and explores how the regulator tackles horror and frightening scenes aimed at children. The BBFC’s guidelines at the junior categories note that at PG there might be some scary moments, and highlight ‘mitigating factors’ – elements which lessen the intensity of the more frightening scenes - like comedy or songs. At PG, scary films for children will also usually have a happy ending.
Listeners can find out more about the recent reclassification of classic films with horror-like sequences, including Lord of the Rings and The Empire Strikes Back, as well as more traditional Halloween scary films for children, including The Witches (1990), Pinocchio (2019) and Scoob! (2019).
Faye Harcourt, Director of Marketing and Outreach at the BBFC, said: “Halloween is a wonderful festival for families to get involved in, but celebrations might be looking a little different this year as some areas are facing tighter lockdown restrictions. We want to help families still get into the spooky mood - what better way than to settle down and watch a scary film all together! All the films we discuss in this podcast are rated PG, so there is something for the whole family to enjoy.”
To accompany the podcast, the BBFC has also published a ‘Movie Night with the BBFC’ pack featuring The Addam’s Family. The pack includes everything you need to throw a movie night, with information about the rating, activities for children and discussion points for when the credits roll to keep the magic alive a bit longer. Families can also check out a listicle of Halloween films rated from U - 18 on the BBFC website for inspiration.
Listen to the podcast on Spotify. The BBFC are also encouraging families to take photos of their spooky themed Halloween movie nights and tag them on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.
